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Austro-Hungarian life in town and country
AustroHungarian life in town and country Author:Francis H. E. Palmer Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER XII THR INDUSTRIAL CLASSES FEW European countries are more richly and more variously endowed with natural resources than Austria-Hungary. While no ... more »less than 93.5 per cent. of the land in Austria and 83.11 in Hungary is officially estimated as '' productive," the mineral wealth of both countries is practically inexhaustible. Indeed, like that of the Russian Empire, it comprises almost every product employed in manufactures or industry from gold to coal. In one respect, however, Austria-Hungary is far more favourably situated than Russia. The immense mineral deposits of the latter lie mainly upon the extreme confines of Europe, or in the heart of her Asiatic dominions. In Austria - Hungary, on the contrary, mineral products of some kind are to be found in more than three fourths of the whole territory, and some of the most valuable, those of Bohemia, for example, are within easy access of all the enterprise and energy of Western Europe. Gold is obtained in workable quantities in districts as widely apart as the Tyrol and Transylvania, and in the latter province, besides the rich deposits of Zalathna, it occurs in many mountain streams, where for centuries it has been regularly worked with primitive instruments by wandering bands of Gipsies, to whom special concessions have been granted by the Government. Silver is even more widely distributed, and a larger amount is obtained in Austria-Hungary than in any other European country except Russia. Copper is found in immense quantities, especially at Schmol- nitz. The lead mines in Carinthia are among the richest in the world. The quicksilver mines of Carniola are only surpassed in Europe by those of Spain. Tin is found in Bohemia, and zinc in many provinces, while antimony, manganese, nickel, arsenic, uranium, chromium, and...« less